Can We Do an Estate Plan From Home?

Justin, with everything going on in the world these days, my wife and I are ready to get our estate plan in order. We especially want to get power of attorney documents and medical directives in place as quickly as possible. However, we’re not really getting out of the house right now. Do we just need to wait until things get back to normal? – John

John, great question, and I totally get where you’re coming
from. The pandemic has caused many
people to feel an increased sense of urgency to get their affairs in order, but
they’ve had trouble balancing that sense of urgency with the encouragement
we’ve received to stay home if possible.
The great news is—you don’t have to choose. Thanks to some quick action on behalf of our state
government, the people of Arkansas can now have their estate plans done
entirely from home.

Until recently, it was almost impossible to have a valid
estate plan without making your way into a lawyer’s office because of the
witness and notary requirements on those important legal documents. But the rules
have been significantly loosened in order to allow people to take care of this
important business while staying home.
Now, under the supervision of an attorney, a notary can notarize legal
documents remotely as long as certain technical requirements are met.

That means you could set a telephone or video conference
with an attorney, talk through your estate planning options and outline your
wishes, review your documents in the comfort of your own home, and then handle
the document execution with the firm remotely. Our attorneys and staff have been helping families from all
over Arkansas in this very way for the past several weeks.

If you’re ready to get this done, give us a call today. We’re able to move pretty quickly on
these matters when we don’t have to worry about setting an office
consultation. And as always,
there’s no charge for the initial strategy session—whether it’s in the office,
over the phone, or online.